Spinning Silver

"There are men who are wolves inside, and want to eat up other people to fill their bellies. That it what was in your house with you, all your life. But here you are with your brothers, and you are not eaten up, and there is not a wolf inside you. You have fed each other, and you kept the wolf away. That is all we can do for each other in the world, to keep the wolf away."

I haven't had much luck with Novik in the past. I read

Uprooted probably six years ago and remember it struck me as kind of bland and disjointed. When

A Deadly Education was released I picked it up, excited by the premise, but didn't make it through the first chapter. I was starting to think Novik's style just wasn't for me. Then a friend urged me to give this one a try, and here we are.

Friends.

I did in fact enjoy it quite a lot.

The standout aspect for me is how Novik writes relationships. Any kind of relationship. Even the little ones that barely get a paragraph's mention. And then we get to see how those relationships build bonds, build links, make their own kind of magic, and I'm sold.

This is how you flesh out characters. And this is how you make me care about them and connect with them.

Novik still has a very distinct style that sometimes trips me up, but it

works.

I loved the fairy tale narrative style and the plot. I also thought it was creative.

Atmospheric and enchanting, with a visceral sense of escapism. Immersive world-building, unique takes on tropes, and just stunningly captured.

****4.0****

Based on Russian folklore "Spinning Silver" spins a story which is rich with imagination. The narration goes slow, a bit dull but very intense. The world building is good as are the characters. It starts from Moneylenders, poverty to Clever queens, The Winter People, The Fire Demon and Magic.

“A power claimed and challenged and thrice carried out is true; the proving makes it so.”

A beautiful, lyrical fairy tale with its own goodness!!

Happy Reading!!

I love everything Naomi Novik writes. Seriously, she's a genius. Nobody crafts the story like this. It's so beautiful and timeless it has the otherness of fae and reality bundled up together into such a beautiful story. It's so well told. I love everything about this.

An absolutely wonderful twist on old fairytales!

I thoroughly enjoyed the characters and the way that Naomi spun all of their stories together. I was interested in the plot from the beginning to the end.

I will definitely read her other books!

This book.

This BOOK!

THIS BOOK!!

Wooooow. I haven't read a book that has impressed me this much in a very long time. Novik has done an incredible job at crafting a world that feels real and tangible to the reader despite the fantasy elements. Everything about this book is a 10 for me; the plot, the characters, the pacing, the world building, the POVs, the ending; everything was perfect. (Okay, maybe I would've liked to have seen more of Miryem and her Staryk in the end, but I can understand Novik's decision, and it honestly would've been weird to see more of them.)

I don't know what I can say to express my appreciation and love for this book. It feels like an old fairytale written by a modern hand. It feels like The Brothers Grimm and Hans Christian Andersen came back to life to write this timeless story. That is the most genuine (and hopefully most impressive) compliment I can give this novel, and I hope this review compels you to give this book a chance. I'm certainly glad I did.

To Naomi Novik: Please continue writing stories like these. I've never read the like from any other author. Help me, Naomi Novik, you're my only hope!

Magical, Eastern European mythology

I lost interest in the characters and honestly I don't rlly care what happens next. Probably because of the multi pov but whatever

Loved the relationship between the main characters, as well as the way the fmc was incredibly unique in her character. But didn’t like the side characters that much. The different pov threw me off sometimes but it was necessary for the plot.